“That country where it is always turning late in the year. That country where the hills are fog and the rivers are mist; where noons go quickly, dusks and twilights linger, and midnights stay.” – Ray Bradbury

Deaver gives readers ‘Carte Blanche’ to sample new Bond book

I’ll be the first to confess I’m not a huge James Bond fan. The character has always just slipped past my radar. I’ve not felt compelled to read the original Ian Fleming books and have seen only a couple of the classic movies. I did enjoy the two Daniel Craig movies, but I’ll confess to being a bigger fan of Jason Bourne as a character.

Because the new book is written by Jeffery Deaver, and I’m a big Jeffery Deaver fan.

Deaver, if you’re unfamiliar, is best known for his series of books featuring Lincoln Rhyme, a former NYPD forensics expert who was rendered quadriplegic after an accident on a crime scene. With his body shattered beyond repair but his brilliant mind intact, Rhyme finds purpose by continuing to work with the NYPD and other agencies on certain cases. Deaver has written nine books about Rhyme and his partner/love interest Amelia Sachs, and each time he seems to up the bar for tightly-written, thoroughly-researched thrillers. In clumsier hands, the amount of research and forensic detail he works into the stories would slow things down, but that’s not a problem with Deaver. He writes in an almost breezy style, using short sentences and compact chapters to move the plot along. A lot of information is given, but everything he includes serves the story and the characters in some way.

A glimpse at the two chapters available from Carte Blanche makes it appear that this style is going to work well in Bond’s world. Deaver brings Bond into contemporary times, and it will be interesting to see the agent working with all the great gadgets and tech available in today’s world. If you’re a Bond fan who’s never read a Jeffery Deaver book, I have a feeling you’ll find your favorite secret agent is in extremely capable hands. As for me, I’m looking forward to my first Bond book, and hoping it will hook me enough to finally give Mr. Fleming’s novels a chance.